Dworkin: Pornography as Violence

Andrea Dworkin stated that pornography is an act of violent, whether
apparent in the sexual scene or not. This particular statement can be
related to the events prominent in the our society. Due to the increase
of demand in sexual pleasure, there has even been an increase in human
traffickings. This is the most indirect form I can picture as
pornography encouraging the sexual habits of a man. It is implicated
that a society's thoughts and ideals can be greatly influenced by the
media and advertisements. This is the violence that I feel Dworkin is
referring too. Pornography is an indirect form of idolizing the sexual
habits and allowing a woman's body to become a "thing" that can be
damaged, sold and bought. Although human trafficking does occur for
labor, there is a high use of this billion dollar industry for sex. It
is sad to say but sometimes people don't realize that it is important to
have a sense of respect for a human life. I understand that people want
to indulge themselves through pornography but that is why there is the
sense of privacy in someone's sexual life. Media reflects the values of
a society, so by allowing pornographic media to become acceptable, the
images portrayed will be converted into expectations. Lack of
expectations though often leads to violence in events such as rape and
human trafficking for sex when sexual pleasure has not been met.
Dworkin's biggest concern is the portrayal of a woman. Women constantly
have to prove themselves capable of being more than a sexual toy,
especially in the early 1900s when jobs for a women were limited. A
woman's place was clearly defined and Dworkin was concerned that
pornography was not aiding in the woman's trajectory to rise out of
their common roles.